#68 Mellow

Thinking about my last entry, and about how we change so much over the years. I have actually surprised myself lately by how mellow I have become, and I have a perfect example:

The Chevy I sold to the guy down the street had a serious problem. It ran even better than fine in dry weather, and it started fine and would run just as well in wet weather - for a while. But if there was enough water on the road that it splashed up from underneath, it would eventually start coughing and bucking, and would threaten to stall. The only way to keep it going once it started coughing would be to stay in the highest gear possible, and work the clutch and gas pedal together in and out, gentling it along. If it stalled, it would start again easily, and run in place, but if you got onto the wet road again, it would start coughing again.

The Chevy dealership didn’t fix it. They discounted my description and ignored my request that they drive it in the rain. First trip they returned it to me with nothing done. They couldn’t see any problem at all. Of course, they didn’t test drive in the rain. Next trip, they replaced the fuel pump and filter, because they KNEW that must of course be the problem. The next time it rained, it coughed. When I complained, they refused to refund my money because "it needed a new fuel pump and filter anyway" (at 50,000 miles?!), and offered to replace more stuff - "you probably need a new carburetor" - "you’ve got crap in your gas tank" - "that jerking sounds like transmission" - they’d think of something.... They didn’t want to hear that the symptoms didn’t match their diagnoses. They just wanted to replace parts until something clicked.

So I took it to a local independent garage. The mechanic there listened to me, and pointed out that this model Chevy doesn’t have metal spark plug wires - it has carbon wires. It’s possible that there is some disintegration of the wires, so when they get splashed, they sort of short out. That sounded possible to me, it fit the symptoms, so he replaced the wires (with more carbon wires - he didn’t want to use the other stuff because he wasn’t sure WHY they were carbon, I guess), and for a little over a year, there was no problem at all, even in a near monsoon. The next time, same thing. Replacing the wires lasted a little over another year.

(I told a friend about this, and she said she’d had the same problem with one of her cars, and when they replaced the wires onetime it DIDN’T fix it, and it turned out that the carbon had gotten poofed around in the carb, so you have to clean the carburetor, too.)

After it started coughing again, I didn’t drive the Chevy in the rain for the next six months, because Jay was very ill then and I didn’t have time to fuss with it, then after we bought the van I didn’t drive it hardly at all for 18 months, then I sold it to Nick.

I told the new owner all about the problem, and all the misdiagnoses, and how merely replacing the spark plug wires (and cleaning the carb cap) would fix it, had fixed it twice, and how it needed the wires changed again.

A few weeks later, I asked him how the Chevy was doing. He said he loves it, and that it is getting right around the 40mpg I had promised. I asked if he had changed the wires yet. He said no, but that he had driven it to the Jersey shore a few days back, and it had rained, and he did experience the problem firsthand.

He then went on to say that he thought it was water in the fuel line!!!

I surprised myself.

I said "Oh. Ok."

Ten years ago I’d have set him straight in no uncertain terms. "Water in the fuel line would not be fixed by replacing the spark plug wires! Nor would it be relieved by sitting still in a parking lot! The car would not start easily with water in the fuel line! Are you ignoring everything I have experienced and told you?"

Ten years ago I would have seen it in terms of his discounting what I said, ignoring me. I would have felt slapped. I would have felt a need to defend myself, to convince him that what I said was RIGHT! And that he should LISTEN to me!

Now, I see it as his need to do it himself. He IS discounting what I’d said, but NOT because I’m not worthy. Whether I or what I said was worthy of attention or not doesn’t enter into it in the least! He just wants to play with the problem himself for a while. Eventually, maybe he’ll change the wires. Maybe he’ll kick himself for not doing it sooner. Maybe he’ll just smile and nod "She was right. How ‘bout that!" Maybe he’ll find out WHY the wires go flooey every 14 months or so. I have done my part. It’s in his lap now.

Mellow.

Or maybe I’m just depressed.